Events

927 – Æthelstan, King of England, secures a pledge from Constantine II of Scotland that the latter will not ally with Viking kings, beginning the process of unifying Great Britain.

1191 – Third Crusade: Saladin's garrison surrenders to Conrad of Montferrat, ending the two-year siege of Acre.

1543 – King Henry VIII of England marries his sixth and last wife, Catherine Parr, at Hampton Court Palace.

1561 – Saint Basil's Cathedral in Moscow is consecrated.

1562 – Fray Diego de Landa, acting Bishop of Yucatan, burns the sacred books of the Maya.

1580 – The Ostrog Bible, one of the early printed Bibles in a Slavic language, is published.

1690 – Battle of the Boyne (Julian calendar) – The armies of William III defeat those of the former James II.

1691 – Battle of Aughrim (Julian calendar) – The decisive victory of William III of England's forces in Ireland.

1789 – French revolutionary and radical journalist Camille Desmoulins gave a speech, following hearing the news that France's financial minister Jacques Necker has been dismissed. The speech called the citizens to arms, which lead to the falling of the Bastille two days later.

1790 – The Civil Constitution of the Clergy is passed in France by the National Constituent Assembly.

1804 – Former United States Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton dies a day after being shot in a duel.

1806 – Sixteen German imperial states leave the Holy Roman Empire and form the Confederation of the Rhine.

1812 – War of 1812: the United States invade Canada at Windsor, Ontario.

1843 – 1843 – Joseph Smith, Jr., founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, proclaimed a revelation recommending polygamy.

1862 – The Medal of Honor is authorized by the United States Congress.

1879 – The National Guards Unit of Bulgaria is founded.

1913 – Second Balkan War: Serbian forces begin their siege of the Bulgarian city of Vidin; the siege is later called off when the war ends.

1917 – The Bisbee Deportation occurs as vigilantes kidnap and deport nearly 1,300 striking miners and others from Bisbee, Arizona.

1918 – The Japanese Imperial Navy battleship ''Kawachi'' blows up at Shunan, western Honshu, Japan, killing at least 621.

1920 – The Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty is signed. Soviet Russia recognises independent Lithuania.

1932 – Hedley Verity takes a cricket world record 10 wickets for 10 runs in a county match for Yorkshire

1943 – World War II: Battle of Prokhorovka – German and Soviet forces engage in the largest tank engagement of all time.

1948 – Arab–Israeli War: Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion orders the explusion of Palestinians from the towns of Lod and Ramla.

1960 – Orlyonok, the main Young Pioneer camp of the Russian SFSR, is founded.

1961 – Pune floods due to failure of the Khadakwasla and Panshet dams. Half of Pune is submerged, more than 100,000 families need to be relocated and the death tally exceeds 2,000.

1962 – The Rolling Stones perform their first ever concert, at the Marquee Club in London.

1967 – The Newark riots began in Newark, New Jersey.

1970 – A fire consumes the wooden home of Norwegian composer Geirr Tveitt and irretrievably destroys about 90 percent of his output.

1971 – The Australian Aboriginal flag is flown for the first time.

1973 – A fire destroys the entire 6th floor of the National Personnel Records Center of the United States.

1975 – São Tomé and Príncipe declare independence from Portugal.

1979 – The island nation of Kiribati becomes independent from Great Britain.

1979 – Disco Demolition Night at Comiskey Park Chicago, IL

2006 – The Hezbollah initiate Operation True Promise.

2007 – U.S. Army Apache helicopters perform airstrikes in Baghdad, Iraq; footage from the cockpit is later leaked to the Internet.

Births

1394 – Ashikaga Yoshinori, Japanese shogun (d. 1441)

1468 – Juan del Encina, Spanish Composer, poet and playwright

1596 – Tsar Michael I of Russia (d. 1645)

1675 – Evaristo Felice Dall'Abaco, Italian composer and violinist (d. 1742)

1730 – Josiah Wedgwood, English potter (d. 1795)

1803 – Peter Chanel, French priest and saint (d. 1841)

1807 – Thomas Hawksley, English civil engineer (d. 1893)

1813 – Claude Bernard, French physiologist (d. 1878)

1817 – Henry David Thoreau, American writer and philosopher (d. 1862)

1824 – Eugène Boudin, French painter (d. 1898)

1828 – Nikolai Chernyshevsky, Russian philosopher (d. 1889)

1839 – Frederick Halsey, English Conservative Party politician (d. 1927)

1849 – Sir William Osler, Canadian physician and author (d. 1919)

1850 – Otto Schoetensack, German anthropologist (d. 1912)

1852 – Hipólito Yrigoyen, Argentinian politician, 19th and 21st President of Argentina (d. 1933)

1854 – George Eastman, American inventor (d. 1932)

1854 – Juan Gualberto Gómez, Afro-Cuban leader in the Cuban war of independence (d. 1933)

1861 – Anton Arensky, Russian composer, pianist and professor of music (d. 1906)

1863 – Albert Calmette, French physician (d. 1933)

1863 – Paul Drude, German physicist (d. 1906)

1864 – George Washington Carver, American botanist (d. 1943)

1868 – Stefan George, German poet (d. 1933)

1870 – Louis II, Prince of Monaco (d. 1949)

1872 – Emil Hácha, Czech politician (d. 1945)

1876 – Max Jacob, French poet (d. 1944)

1878 – Peeter Põld, Estonian pedagogic scientist and politician (d. 1930)

1880 – Tod Browning, American film director (d. 1962)

1884 – Amedeo Modigliani, Italian painter and sculptor (d. 1920)

1886 – Jean Hersholt, Danish film director and actor (d. 1956)

1892 – Bruno Schulz, Polish writer and painter (d. 1942)

1895 – Kirsten Flagstad, Norwegian soprano (d. 1962)

1895 – Buckminster Fuller, American architect (d. 1983)

1895 – Oscar Hammerstein II, American lyricist (d. 1960)

1902 – Günther Anders, German philosopher (d. 1992)

1904 – Pablo Neruda, Chilean poet, Nobel laureate (d. 1973)

1906 – Pietro Tordi, Italian actor (d. 1990)

1908 – Milton Berle, American comedian (d. 2002)

1908 – Paul Runyan, American professional golfer (d. 2002)

1909 – Curly Joe DeRita, American actor and comedian (d.1993)

1909 – Herbert Zim, The founder and editor in chief of the Golden Guides (d.1994)

1909 – Fritz Leonhardt, German civil engineer (d. 1999)

1913 – Willis Lamb, American physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 2008)

1914 – Mohammad Moin, Iranian writer (d. 1971)

1917 – Andrew Wyeth, American artist (d. 2009)

1919 – George Weissman, American businessman (d. 2009)

1920 – Pierre Berton, Canadian journalist and writer (d. 2004)

1920 – Beah Richards, American actress (d. 2000)

1920 – Keith Andes, American actor (d. 2005)

1921 – Bob Fillion, French Canadian ice hockey player

1922 – Mark Hatfield, American politician (d. 2011)

1923 – René Favaloro, Argentine cardiac surgeon who created the technique for coronary bypass surgery (d. 2000)

1924 – Fedon Matheou, Greek retired basketball coach and player

1925 – Roger Smith, American automotive executive (d. 2007)

1928 – Elias James Corey, American chemist, Nobel laureate

1928 – Jo Myong-Rok, North Korean military official (d. 2010)

1930 – Gordon Pinsent, Canadian actor, director and writer

1930 – Alberto Lionello, Italian film actor

1932 – Otis Davis, American middle distance runner

1932 – Monte Hellman, American Film Director producer, and film editor.

1933 – Donald E. Westlake, American novelist (d. 2008)

1934 – Van Cliburn, American pianist

1937 – Bill Cosby, American comedian and actor

1937 – Lionel Jospin, French politician, 165th Prime Minister of France

1937 – Michel Louvain, French Canadian singer

1937 – Robert McFarlane, Security Advisor to President Ronald Reagan, from 1983 through 1985.

1937 – Mickey Edwards, Republican congressman

1938 – Ron Fairly, American baseball player

1938 – Wieger Mensonides, Dutch swimmer

1939 – Phillip Adams, Australian broadcaster and journalist

1941 – Benny Parsons, American NASCAR driver (d. 2007)

1941 – Joseph Whipp, American actor

1942 – Billy Smith, Australian rugby league player

1942 – Tam White, Scottish blues singer and actor (d. 2010)

1943 – Christine McVie, British singer, musician, and songwriter (Fleetwood Mac)

1943 – Walter Murch, American film editor

1943 – Paul Silas, American basketball player and head coach

1944 – Denise Nicholas, American actress and activist

1945 – Leopoldo Mastelloni, Italian actor

1946 – Robert Fisk, an English writer and journalist

1947 – Loren Coleman, American cryptozoologist and author

1947 – Gareth Edwards, Welsh rugby union player

1947 – Richard C. McCarty, American professor of psychology

1948 – Ben Burtt, American sound designer

1948 – Walter Egan, American singer

1948 – Richard Simmons, American fitness trainer

1948 – Jay Thomas, American actor

1949 – Rick Hendrick, American NASCAR team owner

1950 – Eric Carr, American drummer (Kiss) (d. 1991)

1950 – Gilles Meloche, Canadian ice hockey player

1951 – Brian Grazer, American film producer

1951 – Cheryl Ladd, American actress

1951 – Piotr Pustelnik, Polish mountaineer

1951 – Sylvia Sass, Hungarian soprano

1951 – Jamey Sheridan, American actor

1952 – Voja Antonić, Serbian inventor and writer

1952 – Philip Taylor Kramer, American bassist (Iron Butterfly) (d. 1995)

1952 – Liz Mitchell, Jamaican singer (Boney M.)

1953 – John Ausonius, Swedish criminal (''The Laser Man'')

1954 – Wolfgang Dremmler, German footballer

1955 – Bambi Woods, American porn actress

1956 – Sandi Patty, American singer

1956 – Mario Soto, Dominican baseball player

1956 – Mel Harris, American actress.

1957 – Rick Douglas Husband, American astronaut (d. 2003)

1957 – Taso N. Stavrakis, American actor and stuntman

1958 – J. D. Hayworth, Congressman from Arizona

1958 – Tonya Lee Williams, Canadian actress

1959 – Charlie Murphy, American actor and writer

1959 – David Brown, Australian weatherman

1960 – Corynne Charby, French model, actress and singer

1961 – Heikko Glöde, German footballer

1962 – Julio César Chávez, Mexican boxer

1962 – Dan Murphy, American guitarist (Soul Asylum)

1962 – Dean Wilkins, English football manager

1964 – Tim Gane, English guitarist (Stereolab, McCarthy)

1964 – Gaby Roslin, English television presenter

1965 – Sanjay Manjrekar, Indian cricketer

1966 – Jeff Bucknum, American auto racer

1966 – Ana Torrent, Spanish film actress

1966 – Misato Watanabe, Japanese popular music

1966 – Taiji Sawada, Japanese bass guitarist (d. 2011)

1967 – Richard Herring, English comedian

1967 – John Petrucci, American guitarist (Dream Theater)

1967 – Bruny Surin, Canadian sprinter

1968 – Catherine Plewinski, French swimmer

1969 – Alan Mullally, England cricketer

1969 – Lisa Nicole Carson, American actress

1969 – Jesse Pintado, American guitarist (Napalm Death) (d. 2006)

1970 – Lee Byung-hun, South Korean actor

1970 – Juba Kalamka, American hip hop artist

1971 – Kristi Yamaguchi, American figure skater

1971 – Loni Love, American comedian

1972 – Travis Best, American basketball player

1972 – Brett Reed, American drummer (Rancid)

1972 – Jake Wood, English actor

1972 – Patrick Hill, American sculptor

1973 – Magoo, American rapper

1973 – Christian Vieri, Italian footballer

1974 – Stelios Giannakopoulos, Greek footballer

1974 – Gregory Helms, American professional wrestler

1975 – Cheyenne Jackson, American actor and singer

1976 – Dan Boyle, Canadian ice hockey player

1976 – Anna Friel, British actress

1976 – Tracie Spencer, American singer and songwriter

1977 – Neil Harris, English footballer

1977 – Steve Howey, American actor

1977 – Brock Lesnar, American mixed martial artist and professional wrestler

1978 – Claire Chitham, New Zealand actress

1978 – Topher Grace, American actor

1978 – Michelle Rodriguez, American actress

1979 – Nikos Barlos, Greek basketball player

1979 – Chris Campbell, American author

1980 – Johanna Klum, German TV presenter

1980 – Richard Bennett, American guitarist

1980 – Katherine Legge, English racing driver

1980 – Tom Price, British Actor

1981 – Adrienne Camp, South African singer and songwriter

1982 – Antonio Cassano, Italian footballer

1982 – Tara Kirk, American swimmer

1983 – Megumi Kawamura, Japanese volleyball player

1984 – Gareth Gates, English singer

1984 – Jonathan Lewis, American football player

1984 – Michael McGovern, Northern Irish footballer

1985 – Luiz Ejlli, Albanian singer

1985 – Natasha Poly, Russian model

1986 – JP Pietersen, South African rugby union footballer

1988 – Melissa O'Neil, Canadian singer

1988 – Inbee Park, South Korean golfer

1989 – Phoebe Tonkin, Australian actress and model

1990 – Bébé, Portuguese footballer

1992 – Eoghan Quigg, Northern Irish singer

1996 – Jordan Romero, American mountaineer

Deaths

783 – Bertrada of Laon, Frankish wife of Pepin the Short (b. 720)

1441 – Ashikaga Yoshinori, Japanese shogun (b. 1394)

1536 – Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus, Dutch writer and philosopher (b. 1466)

1584 – Steven Borough, English explorer (b. 1525)

1664 – Stefano della Bella, Italian printmaker (b. 1610)

1682 – Jean Picard, French astronomer (b. 1620)

1693 – John Ashby, English admiral (b. c. 1640)

1712 – Richard Cromwell, son of Oliver Cromwell (b. 1626)

1742 – Evaristo Felice Dall'Abaco, Italian composer (b. 1675)

1749 – Charles de la Boische, Marquis de Beauharnois, Governor of New France (b. c. 1671)

1773 – Johann Joachim Quantz, German flutist and composer (b. 1697)

1804 – Alexander Hamilton, 1st United States Secretary of the Treasury (b. 1755)

1845 – Henrik Wergeland, Norwegian author (b. 1808)

1849 – Dolley Madison, 4th First Lady Of The United States (b. 1768)

1870 – John A. Dahlgren, American Navy admiral (b. 1809)

1892 – Alexander Cartwright, American fireman and inventor of baseball (b. 1820)

1910 – Charles Stewart Rolls, British engineer and aviator (b. 1887)

1918 – Dragutin Lerman, Croatian explorer (b. 1864)

1926 – Gertrude Bell, English archaeologist and spy (b. 1868)

1931 – Nathan Söderblom, Swedish archbishop, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1866)

1934 – Ole Evinrude, Norwegian-born American inventor and industrialist (b. 1877)

1935 – Alfred Dreyfus, French military officer (b. 1859)

1944 – Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., American general, son of Theodore Roosevelt (b. 1887)

1945 – Wolfram von Richthofen, German field marshal (b. 1895)

1945 – Boris Galerkin, Russian mathematician (b. 1871)

1947 – Jimmie Lunceford, American saxophonist and bandleader (b. 1902)

1949 – Douglas Hyde, Irish politician (b. 1860)

1950 – Elsie de Wolfe, American socialite and interior decorator (b. 1865)

1961 – Mazo de la Roche, Canadian author (b. 1879)

1962 – Roger Wolfe Kahn, American band leader (b. 1907)

1965 – Christfried Burmeister, Estonian speed skater (b. 1898)

1966 – Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki, Japanese author, translator and teacher/lecturer (b. 1870)

1969 – Henry George Lamond, Australian novelist (b. 1885)

1971 – Yvon Robert, French Canadian professional wrestler (b. 1914)

1973 – Lon Chaney, Jr., American actor (b. 1906)

1979 – Minnie Riperton, American soul singer (b. 1947)

1982 – Kenneth More, English actor (b. 1914)

1983 – Chris Wood, British saxophonist (Traffic) (b. 1944)

1990 – João Saldanha, Brazilian journalist and football manager (b. 1917)

1993 – Dan Eldon, British photojournalist (b. 1970)

1994 – Paisios, Greek Orthodox monk (b. 1924)

1996 – John Chancellor, American television journalist (b. 1927)

1996 – Jonathan Melvoin, American keyboardist (The Smashing Pumpkins) (b. 1961)

1998 – Serge Lemoyne, French Canadian artist (b. 1941)

1998 – Jimmy Driftwood, American folk songwriter and musician (b. 1907)

1999 – Rajendra Kumar, Indian actor (b. 1929)

1999 – Bill Owen, British actor (b. 1914)

2000 – Charles Merritt, Canadian Army officer and recipient of the Victoria Cross (b. 1908)

2001 – Fred Marcellino, American illustrator (b. 1939)

2003 – Benny Carter, American musician (b. 1907)

2004 – Betty Oliphant, co-founder of National Ballet of Canada (b. 1918)

2005 – John King, Baron King of Wartnaby, British noble and aviation executive (b. 1917)

2006 – Adamantios Lemos, Greek actor (b. 1916)

2007 – Stan Zemanek, Australian radio personality (b. 1947)

2007 – Mr. Butch, American homeless person (b. 1951)

2007 – Robert Burås, Norwegian guitar player (b. 1975)

2008 – Tony Snow, American press secretary for George W. Bush (b. 1955)

2008 – Bobby Murcer, American baseball player (b. 1946)

2010 – Harvey Pekar, American comic book writer (b. 1939)

2010 – Paulo Moura, Brazilian clarinetist and saxophonist (b. 1932)

2011 – Sherwood Schwartz, American Television Writer (b. 1916)

Holidays and observances

Christian Feast Day:

*Hermagoras and Fortunatus

*Jason of Tarsus (Roman Catholic Church)

*John Gualbert

*Nabor and Felix

*Veronica

*Viventiolus

*July 12 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Kiribati from the United Kingdom in 1979.

Independence Day, celebrates the independence of São Tomé and Príncipe from Portugal in 1975.

The second day of Naadam. (Mongolia)

The Twelfth, also known as Orangemen's Day, commemorates the Battle of the Boyne. (Northern Ireland, Newfoundland and Labrador)

External links

BBC: On This Day

On This Day in Canada

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Category:Days of the year Category:July

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alt	Christian Bale in a black suit at a movie premiere.
birth name	Christian Charles Philip Bale
birth date	January 30, 1974
birth place	Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, Wales, United Kingdom
occupation	Actor
years active	1982–present
spouse	Sandra Blažić (2000–present; 1 daughter) }}

Christian Charles Philip Bale (born 30 January 1974) is an English actor. Best known for his roles in American films, Bale has starred in both big budget Hollywood films and the smaller projects from independent producers and art houses.

Bale first caught the public eye at the age of 13, when he was cast in the starring role of Steven Spielberg's ''Empire of the Sun'' (1987). He played an English boy who is separated from his parents and subsequently finds himself lost in a Japanese internment camp during World War II. He is notable for his role as serial killer Patrick Bateman in ''American Psycho'' (2000), and for portraying Bruce Wayne/Batman in Christopher Nolan's ''Batman Begins'' (2005) and ''The Dark Knight'' (2008).

In 2010, Bale played Dicky Eklund in the biopic ''The Fighter''. He received critical acclaim for his role and won several awards, including the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role.

Early life

Bale was born in Wales to parents of English descent. His South African–born father, David Bale, was an entrepreneur, commercial pilot, and talent manager, and his mother, Jenny James, was a performer. He is the youngest of four children. After leaving Britain at the age of 2 in 1976, Bale spent his childhood in several countries, such as Portugal.

Settling for four years in Bournemouth and Henley-on-Thames, Bale was educated at Shiplake Church of England Primary School, the independent Dolphin School, Berkshire, and at Bournemouth School. He played rugby. Bale has described his childhood, with respect to his mother being in the circus, as "interesting." He recalled his first kiss was with an acrobat named Barta.

As a child, he trained in ballet and guitar. His sister Louise's work in theatre also influenced his decision to become an actor. Bale's father was very supportive of his son's acting, resigning from his job as a commercial pilot to travel and manage Bale's burgeoning career. The elder Bale later married feminist icon Gloria Steinem. He passed away, at age 62, on 30 December 2003 from brain lymphoma.

Bale's first foray into acting was a commercial for the fabric softener Lenor in 1982, when he was 8 years old. A year later, he appeared in a ''Pac-Man'' cereal commercial playing a child rock star. In 1984, he made his stage debut in ''The Nerd'', opposite Rowan Atkinson.

Career

1986–1998

Bale made his film debut as Tsarevich Alexei Nikolaevich of Russia in the made-for-television film ''Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna'' in 1986, which was followed by leading roles in the miniseries ''Heart of the Country'' and the fantasy adventure ''Mio in the Land of Faraway'', in which he appeared with Christopher Lee and Nick Pickard.

In 1987, Amy Irving, his co-star in ''Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna'', recommended Bale to her then-husband, Steven Spielberg, for a role in ''Empire of the Sun'', adapted from the J.G. Ballard semi-autobiography. Bale's performance as Jim Graham earned him widespread critical praise and the first ever "Best Performance by a Juvenile Actor" award from the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. The attention the press and his schoolmates lavished upon him after this took a toll on Bale, and he contemplated giving up acting until Kenneth Branagh approached him and persuaded him to appear in ''Henry V'' in 1989. In 1990, he played the role of Jim Hawkins opposite Charlton Heston (as Long John Silver) in ''Treasure Island'', an adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic book.

In 1992, Bale starred as Jack Kelly in the Disney musical ''Newsies'', and followed it up in 1993 with another release, ''Swing Kids'', a movie about teenagers who secretly listened to forbidden jazz during the rise of Nazi Germany. Bale was recommended by actress Winona Ryder to star in Gillian Armstrong's 1994 film ''Little Women''. Bale provided the voice for Thomas, a young compatriot of Captain John Smith, in Disney's ''Pocahontas'' (1995) and in 1997 played Arthur Stuart in ''Velvet Goldmine'', Todd Haynes' tribute to glam rock. In 1999, Bale contributed to an all-star cast, including Kevin Kline, Michelle Pfeiffer, Stanley Tucci, and Rupert Everett, portraying Demetrius in an updated version of William Shakespeare's ''A Midsummer Night's Dream''.

1999–2001

In 1999, Bale played serial killer Patrick Bateman in ''American Psycho'', director Mary Harron's adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis' controversial novel. Bale was briefly dropped from the project in favor of Leonardo DiCaprio, but DiCaprio eventually dropped out to star in ''The Beach'', and Bale was cast once again. He researched his character by studying the novel and prepared himself physically for the role by spending months tanning and exercising in order to achieve the "Olympian physique" of the character as described in the original novel. He went so far as to distance himself from the cast and crew to maintain the darker side of Bateman's character. ''American Psycho'' premiered at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival to much controversy. Roger Ebert condemned the film at first, calling it pornography, and "the most loathed film at Sundance," but gave it a favourable review, writing that Harron "transformed a novel about bloodlust into a movie about men's vanity." Of Bale's performance, he wrote, "Christian Bale is heroic in the way he allows the character to leap joyfully into despicability; there is no instinct for self-preservation here, and that is one mark of a good actor."

On 14 April 2000, Lions Gate Films released ''American Psycho'' in theatres. Bale was later approached to make a cameo appearance in another Bret Easton Ellis adaptation, ''The Rules of Attraction'', a film loosely connected to ''American Psycho'', but he declined out of loyalty to Harron's vision of Bateman, which he felt could not be properly expressed by anyone else. In 2000, he again played a wealthy murderer, this time in John Singleton's ''Shaft''.

Bale has played an assortment of diverse characters since 2001. His first role after ''American Psycho'' was in the John Madden adaptation of the best-selling novel ''Captain Corelli's Mandolin''. Bale played Mandras, a Greek fisherman who vied with Nicolas Cage's title character for the affections of Pelagia (Penelope Cruz). ''Captain Corelli's Mandolin'' was Bale's second time working with John Hurt, after ''All the Little Animals''.

2002–2004

From 2002 to 2003, Bale starred in three feature films. ''Laurel Canyon'' (2002) was generally well received by critics. This film also marked the second time he worked with actress Kate Beckinsale, his costar in ''Prince of Jutland'' (1994). Critics generally focused on star Frances McDormand's performance over the rest of the cast, however.

''Reign of Fire'' was Bale's first action vehicle and had, compared to all his previous work, an immense budget estimated at US$95,000,000. Bale entered into negotiations about starring in the film with reservations, but director Rob Bowman convinced him to take the lead role. Bale starred as Quinn Abercromby opposite Matthew McConaughey's Denton Van Zan. Bale and McConaughey trained for their respective roles by boxing and working out.

''Equilibrium'' was Bale's third film of 2002, costing US$20 million to produce but earning just over US$5 million worldwide. In ''Equilibrium'', Bale played John Preston, an elite law enforcer in a dystopian society. ''Equilibrium'' featured a fictional martial art called Gun Kata that combined gunfighting with hand-to-hand combat. According to moviebodycounts.com, the character of John Preston has the third most on-screen kills in a single movie ever with 118, exactly half of the movie's total of 236.

After a year's hiatus, Bale returned in 2004 to play Trevor Reznik, the title character in the psychological thriller ''The Machinist''. Bale gained attention for his devotion to the role and for the lengths to which he went to achieve Reznik's emaciated, skeletal appearance. He went without proper rest for prolonged periods, and placed himself on a crash diet of generally coffee and apples, which reduced his weight by 63 pounds () in a matter of months. By the end of filming Bale weighed only 121 pounds (), a transformation he described as "very calming mentally" and which drew comparisons to Robert De Niro's alternate weight-gaining regimen for his role as Jake LaMotta in the 1980 film ''Raging Bull''. Bale claimed that he had not worked for a period of time before he was cast in the film. "...I just hadn't found scripts that I'd really been interested in. So I was really dying for something to arrive. Then when this one did, I just didn't want to put it down. I finished it and, upon the kind of revelation that you get at the end, I immediately wanted to go back and re-visit it, to take a look at what clues I could have gotten throughout". ''The Machinist'' was a low-budget production, costing roughly US$5 million to produce, and was given only a limited US release. It was well received, with the review tallying website Rotten Tomatoes reporting that 75% of the critics' reviews tallied were positive.

Bale, an admirer of Hayao Miyazaki's ''Spirited Away'', was then cast as the voice of the title character, Howl, in the English language dub of the Japanese director's fantasy anime adventure ''Howl's Moving Castle'', an adaptation of Diana Wynne Jones's children's novel. Its gross in the US was US$4,711,096, a fraction of its worldwide gross (US$235,184,110).

Batman: 2005–present

It was reported that Bale had previously auditioned for the role of Robin in ''Batman Forever'' (1995) and later ''Batman and Robin'' (1997), but lost out to Chris O'Donnell. However, this rumor was later dispelled by Bale himself in a magazine interview in 2008. In 2004, after completing filming for ''The Machinist'', Bale won the coveted role of Batman and his alter ego Bruce Wayne in Christopher Nolan's ''Batman Begins'', a reboot of the Batman film series. Bale beat out Jake Gyllenhaal, the closest competition for the role.

Still fresh off ''The Machinist'', it became necessary for Bale to bulk up to match Batman's muscular physique. He was given a deadline of six months to do this. Bale recalled it as far from a simple accomplishment: "...when it actually came to building muscle, I was useless. I couldn't do one push up the first day. All of the muscles were gone, so I had a real tough time rebuilding all of that." With the help of a personal trainer, Bale succeeded in meeting the deadline, gaining a total of in six months. He went from about 130 lbs to 230 lbs. He then discovered that he had actually gained more weight than the director desired, and dropped his weight to 190 lbs by the time filming began.

Bale had initial concerns about playing Batman, as he felt more ridiculous than intimidating in the Batsuit. He dealt with this by depicting Batman as a savage beast. To attain a deeper understanding of the character, Bale read various Batman comic books. He explained his interpretation of the young boy: "Batman is his hidden, demonic rage-filled side. The creature Batman creates is an absolutely sincere creature and one that he has to control but does so in a very haphazard way. He's capable of enacting violence — and to kill — so he's constantly having to rein himself in." For Bale, the most gruelling part about playing Batman was the suit. "You stick it on, you get hot, you sweat and you get a headache in the mask," he said. "But I'm not going to bitch about it because I get to play Batman." When promoting the film in interviews and public events, Bale retained an American accent to avoid confusion.

''Batman Begins'' was released in the U.S. on 15 June 2005 and was a U.S. and international triumph for Warner Bros., costing approximately US$135 million to produce and taking in over US$370 million in returns worldwide. Bale earned the Best Hero award at the 2006 MTV Movie Awards for his performance.

Bale reprised his role as Batman in the ''Batman Begins'' sequel ''The Dark Knight''. He trained in the Keysi Fighting Method, and performed many of his own stunts. ''The Dark Knight'' was released in the U.S. on 18 July 2008 and stormed through the box office, with a record-breaking $158.4 million in the U.S. in its first weekend. It broke the $300 million barrier in 10 days, the $400 million mark in 18 days and the $500 million mark in 43 days, three new U.S. box office records set by the film. The film went on to gross over $1 billion at the box office worldwide, making it the fourth-highest grossing movie worldwide of all time, before adjusting for inflation.

It has been confirmed that Bale will star in the third projected movie in the rebooted franchise, ''The Dark Knight Rises'', which will be released on 20 July 2012, making Bale the actor who has played Batman more times than any other actor in feature film. Bale has given the same opinion as Nolan that, if the latter was forced to bring Robin into the films, he would never again play Batman; even though one of his favorite Batman stories, ''Batman: Dark Victory'', focuses on Robin's origin.

2006–2009

After ''Batman Begins'', Bale returned to appearing in independent films. He was cast as one of the two leads in the South Central David Ayer-helmed crime drama ''Harsh Times'', co-starring with Freddy Rodriguez and Eva Longoria. Bale played Jim Luther Davis, a grim Afghanistan War veteran afflicted with post-traumatic stress disorder, approached by the Department of Homeland Security and hired as a federal agent. ''Harsh Times'' premiered at the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival and had a wide release on 10 November 2006.

Terrence Malick directed ''The New World'', a period piece inspired by the stories of Pocahontas, and Bale was cast as John Rolfe. He shared the screen with Colin Farrell and Q'Orianka Kilcher, who played John Smith and Pocahontas. The majority of screen time was devoted to Farrell and Kilcher; Bale was a secondary character, and only appeared during the last third of the film. The film was a failure at the U.S. box office and its worldwide total (US$29,506,437) fell short of turning a profit (the production budget was placed at US$30 million).

In 2006, Bale took on four projects. ''Rescue Dawn'', by German filmmaker Werner Herzog, had him playing U.S. Fighter pilot Dieter Dengler, who has to fight for his life after being shot down while on a mission during the Vietnam War. Bale left a strong impression on Herzog, with the director complimenting his acting abilities: "I find him one of the greatest talents of his generation. We made up our own minds long before he did ''Batman''." }}In ''The Prestige'', an adaptation of the Christopher Priest novel about a rivalry between two Victorian stage magicians, Bale was reunited with ''Batman Begins'' Michael Caine and director Christopher Nolan. The cast of ''The Prestige'' also included Hugh Jackman, Scarlett Johansson, Piper Perabo, and David Bowie. ''I'm Not There'', a film in which Bale again worked alongside Todd Haynes and Heath Ledger (who would go on to play The Joker in ''The Dark Knight''), is an artistic reflection of the life of Bob Dylan. He starred opposite Russell Crowe in a commercially and critically successful Western film, ''3:10 to Yuma''.

Bale was originally cast to play George W. Bush in Oliver Stone's film ''W.'', but dropped out due to the prosthetics involved. Bale played John Connor in ''Terminator Salvation'' and FBI agent Melvin Purvis in Michael Mann's ''Public Enemies''.

''Terminator Salvation'' incident

In July 2008, Bale flew into an angry tirade on the sets of ''Terminator Salvation'', while filming in New Mexico. In February 2009, the audio recording of the incident was released. The tirade was directed at Shane Hurlbut, director of photography for the film. According to Bale, Hurlbut had, for the second time, ruined his concentration by walking onto the set during a scene. The recording is of a highly agitated Bale directing profanities at Hurlbut, threatening and belittling him, and finally threatening to quit the film if Hurlbut repeated his offence without being fired for it. It was reported that Warner film executives sent the tape to the insurer of the film in case Bale decided to quit the movie. In an interview with ''E! Online'', assistant director and producer of ''Terminator Salvation'', Bruce Franklin, said it was an isolated incident. "If you are working in a very intense scene and someone takes you out of your groove ... It was the most emotional scene in the movie ... [A]nd for him to get stopped in the middle of it. He is very intensely involved in his character. He didn't walk around like that all day long. It was just a moment and it passed," Franklin said.

Actors Whoopi Goldberg and Terry Crews, directors Darren Aronofsky and Ron Howard, as well as ''Ain't It Cool News'' website creator Harry Knowles have also publicly defended Bale's actions, some of them citing the practice that crew members are to remain still while the camera is rolling. The incident also inspired experimental band The Mae Shi to write the song, "R U Professional", which features samples from the recording; similarly, Lucian Piane's remix "Bale Out" is composed almost enirely of audio from the incident. Stephen Colbert parodied the incident on the 4 February 2009 episode of ''The Colbert Report'', in which guest Steve Martin repeatedly walked in front of the camera and was berated by Colbert. The incident was re-enacted on ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'', with ''Inside the Actor's Studio'' host James Lipton giving performances of both Bale and the crewmember. An episode of the animated comedy series ''Family Guy'' also mixed in the voice of Peter Griffin interacting with Bale and reacting to Bale's comments as if they were directed at him to comedic effect.

After remaining silent for most of the week, Bale gave a public apology on 6 February 2009, to a Los Angeles radio station, KROQ. He stated that the outburst was "inexcusable" and that it was motivated by the day's shooting intensity. Bale said he "acted like a punk", and that he and Hurlbut talked after the incident and "resolved this completely". Bale acknowledged that the two worked together for several hours after the incident, and ''"at least a month after that... I've seen a rough cut of the movie and he has done a wonderful job. It looks fantastic"''.

2010–present

Bale starred alongside Mark Wahlberg in the David O. Russell-directed 2010 drama ''The Fighter'', for which he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and thirty other awards in 2011. Near the end of his acceptance speech during the televised Golden Globes awards ceremony, Bale complemented Robert DeNiro by saying he was "the shit". The comment was censored by NBC.

Writer/director Joe Carnahan confirmed in November 2007 that Bale is also involved in the upcoming movie ''Killing Pablo'' in which he is to play Major Steve Jacoby. According to a ''Nuts'' magazine interview, Bale stated that he will be in the running to play the role of Solid Snake in a film adaptation of ''Metal Gear Solid''. Niels Arden Oplev, director of ''The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo'', is to have Bale as lead in his current project ''The Last Photograph'', which Oplev hopes to start filming early 2011. Bale will also star in the upcoming untitled film from Terrence Malick.

Personal life

On 29 January 2000, Bale married Sandra "Sibi" Blažić (born 1970), a former model, make-up artist and personal assistant to Winona Ryder; the couple have a daughter, Emmeline, who was born on 27 March 2005 in Santa Monica, California. Since 1992, Bale has resided in Los Angeles.

Bale has three elder sisters – Erin Bale, a musician; Sharon Bale, a computer professional; and Louise Bale, a theatre actress and director. The Bale family is deeply rooted in show business, especially theatre. Bale is a distant relative of British actress Lillie Langtry, while his uncle, Rex Bale, and maternal grandfather were actors as well.

Like his late father, Christian Bale actively supports environmental groups such as Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Fund. Feminist activist Gloria Steinem became Christian Bale's stepmother on 3 September 2000; it was her first marriage (at the age of 66), and the couple were together until David's death.

During an interview promoting his 2009 film ''Public Enemies'', Bale said he is a video game fan, specifically of the ''Metal Gear Solid'' series. When questioned about his time spent playing the game, Bale stated that he prefers to devote his spare time to constructive things and dislikes discussing his personal life.

Bale has stated that he is a big fan of late comedian Chris Farley and of Farley's film ''Beverly Hills Ninja''.

Film and television credits

+ List of film and television credits
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
1985	''''	Rufus
1986	''Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna''		TV movie
1987	''Heart of the Country''	Ben Harris
1987		BenkeJum-Jum
1987		Jamie "Jim" Graham
1989		Falstaff's Boy
1990			TV movie
1991	''''	Tim Perkins	TV movie
1992	''Newsies''	Jack "Cowboy" KellyFrancis Sullivan
1993		Thomas Berger
1994	''Prince of Jutland''	Amled
1994		Theodore "Laurie" Lawrence
1995		Thomas	Voice only
1996	''''	Edward Rosier
1996	''''	Stevie
1997		Chris Lloyd
1998	''Velvet Goldmine''	Arthur Stuart
1998	''All the Little Animals''	Bobby Platt
1999	''''	Demetrius
1999			TV movie
2000		Patrick Bateman
2000		Walter Wade, Jr.
2001		Mandras
2002		Sam Bentley
2002		Quinn Abercromby
2002		Cleric John Preston
2004	''''	Trevor Reznik
2004
2005	''Batman Begins''
2005			Video gameVoice only
2005	''Harsh Times''	Jim Luther Davis	Also executive producer
2005	''''	John Rolfe
2006	''Rescue Dawn''	Dieter Dengler
2006	''''	Alfred Borden
2007		Dan Evans
2007	''I'm Not There''
2008	''''
2009	''Terminator Salvation''	John Connor
2009		Melvin Purvis
2010	''	Dicky Eklund
TBA	''13 Flowers of Nanjing''		''Filming''
2012	''''		''Filming''

Awards and nominations

+ List of awards and award nominations
! Year	! Award	! Award category	! Title of work	! Result
1987	National Board of Review	Best Juvenile Performance
1988	Young Artist Award		''Empire of the Sun''
2001	Chlotrudis Awards	Best Actor
2001	Empire Award	Best Actor	''American Psycho''
2001	London Film Critics' Circle Awards	British Actor of the Year	''American Psycho''
2001		Best Actor	''American Psycho''
2004		Best Actor	''''
2005	Irish Film and Television Award	Best International Actor	''Batman Begins''
2005	European Film Awards	Best Actor	''''
2005	Saturn Award	Best Actor	''''
2006	London Film Critics' Circle Awards	British Actor of the Year	''''
2006	MTV Movie Awards	Best Hero	''Batman Begins''
2006	Empire Awards	Best Actor	''Batman Begins''
2006	Saturn Awards	Best Actor	''Batman Begins''
2006	Scream Awards	Best Superhero	''Batman Begins''
2006	Scream Awards	Most Heroic Performance	''Batman Begins''
2007	Empire Award	Best Actor	''''
2007	San Diego Film Critics Society Awards	Special Award
2007	Satellite Award	Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama	''Rescue Dawn''
2008	London Film Critics' Circle Awards	British Actor of the Year
2008	Independent Spirit Award	Robert Altman Award (with Todd Haynes, Laura Rosenthal, Cate Blanchett,Richard Gere, Heath Ledger, Ben Whishaw, Marcus Carl Franklin, Bruce Greenwood, Charlotte Gainsbourg)	''I'm Not There''
2008	Scream Awards	Best Fantasy Actor	''''
2008	Scream Awards	Best Superhero	''''
2009	Empire Awards	Best Actor	''''
2009		Favorite Male Acvion Star	''''
2009	People's Choice Awards	Favorite Leading Man	''''
2009	People's Choice Awards	Favorite Superhero	''''
2009	People's Choice Awards	Favorite On Screen Match Up (with Heath Ledger)	''''
2009	People's Choice Awards	Favorite Cast (with Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine,Morgan Freeman, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal)	''''
2009	West Point Cadet Choice Awards	Best Exemplification of Leadership	''''
2009	Saturn Award	Best Actor	''''
2010	BAFTA Award		''''
2010	Alliance of Women Film Journalists	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Austin Film Critics Association		''''
2010	Black Film Critics Circle	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Boston Society of Film Critics	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Boston Society of Film Critics		''''
2010	Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards		''''
2010	Central Ohio Film Critics Circle Association Awards	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Central Ohio Film Critics Circle Association Awards		''''
2010	Chicago Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Denver Film Critics Society	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Detroit Film Critics Society	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Florida Film Critics Circle	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010			''''
2010	Houston Film Critics Society	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010		Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Kansas City Film Critics Circle	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Las Vegas Film Critics Society	Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	London Film Critics' Circle	British Actor of the Year	''''
2010	National Board of Review	National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	New York Film Critics Online	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	North Texas Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Oklahoma Film Critics Circle	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Online Film Critics Society	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Phoenix Film Critics Society	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	San Diego Film Critics Society	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	San Diego Film Critics Society		''''
2010	Satellite Awards	Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture	''''
2011	Screen Actors Guild Awards	Best Cast	''''
2011	Screen Actors Guild Awards	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Utah Film Critics Association	Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Vancouver Film Critics Circle		''''
2010	Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association	Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor	''''
2010	Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association	Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association	''''
2011	[[Academy Awards	Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor	''''

References

External links

Category:1974 births Category:People educated at Bournemouth School Category:Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe (film) winners Category:Best Supporting Actor Academy Award winners Category:English child actors Category:English expatriates in the United States Category:English film actors Category:Living people Category:People from Haverfordwest Category:People from Bournemouth Category:People from the Greater Los Angeles Area

ar:كريستيان بيل an:Christian Bale az:Kristian Beyl bg:Крисчън Бейл ca:Christian Bale cs:Christian Bale cy:Christian Bale da:Christian Bale de:Christian Bale es:Christian Bale eu:Christian Bale fa:کریستین بیل fr:Christian Bale ga:Christian Bale gl:Christian Bale ko:크리스찬 베일 hr:Christian Bale id:Christian Bale it:Christian Bale he:כריסטיאן בייל ka:კრისტიან ბეილი la:Christianus Bale hu:Christian Bale mk:Кристијан Бејл ml:ക്രിസ്റ്റ്യൻ ബെയ്ൽ ms:Christian Bale nl:Christian Bale ja:クリスチャン・ベール no:Christian Bale pl:Christian Bale pt:Christian Bale ro:Christian Bale ru:Бэйл, Кристиан sq:Christian Bale simple:Christian Bale sk:Christian Bale sr:Кристијан Бејл fi:Christian Bale sv:Christian Bale ta:கிரிஸ்டியன் பேல் th:คริสเตียน เบล tr:Christian Bale uk:Крістіан Бейл vi:Christian Bale yo:Christian Bale zh:克里斯汀·貝爾

name	Justin Bieber
background	solo_singer
birth name	Justin Drew Bieber
birth date	March 01, 1994
birth place	London, Ontario, Canada
origin	Stratford, Ontario, Canada
instrument	Vocals, guitar, piano, percussion, trumpet
genre	Pop, R&B;, teen pop
occupation	Singer, musician, actor
years active	2009–present
label	Island, RBMG
associated acts	Usher
website	justinbiebermusic.com }}

Justin Drew Bieber ( , born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian pop/R&B; singer, songwriter and actor. Bieber was discovered in 2008 by Scooter Braun, who came across Bieber's videos on YouTube and later became his manager. Braun arranged for him to meet with Usher in Atlanta, Georgia, and Bieber was soon signed to Raymond Braun Media Group (RBMG), a joint venture between Braun and Usher, and then to a recording contract with Island Records offered by L.A. Reid. Bieber's debut single, "One Time", was released in 2009 and peaked in the top ten in Canada and charted in the top thirty in several international markets. His debut album, the seven-track EP ''My World'', followed in November 2009, and was soon certified platinum in the United States. He became the first artist to have seven songs from a debut album chart on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Bieber's first full-length studio album, ''My World 2.0'', was released in March 2010. It debuted at number one or within the top ten in several countries and was certified platinum in the United States. It was preceded by the worldwide top-ten single, "Baby". The music video of "Baby" is currently ranked as the most viewed and most discussed YouTube video. Bieber followed-up the release of his debut album with his first headlining tour, the My World Tour, the remix albums ''My Worlds Acoustic'' and ''Never Say Never – The Remixes'', and the 3D biopic-concert film ''Justin Bieber: Never Say Never'' – which had an opening weekend gross that nearly matched the record for the biggest opening weekend for a concert-film. Bieber released his second studio album, ''Under the Mistletoe'' in November 2011, which debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200. Bieber has received numerous awards, including Artist of the Year at the 2010 American Music Awards — and has been nominated for numerous awards, including Best New Artist and Best Pop Vocal Album at the 53rd Grammy Awards.

Life and career

1994–2007: Childhood and youth

Bieber was born on March 1, 1994, in London, Ontario, and was raised in Stratford, Ontario. Bieber's mother, Patricia Lynn "Pattie" Mallette, was 18 years old when she became pregnant with her son. Mallette, originally from Stratford, raised her son with the help of her parents, Bruce and Diane. Mallette worked a series of low-paying office jobs, raising Bieber as a single mother in low-income housing. Bieber has maintained contact with his father, Jeremy Jack Bieber, who married another woman and had two children. Bieber's paternal great-grandfather was a German immigrant to Canada. His mother's ancestry is French Canadian. Bieber attended French immersion school at Stratford school Jean Sauve.

During his childhood, Bieber was interested in hockey, soccer, and chess; he often kept his musical aspirations to himself. As he grew up, Bieber taught himself to play the piano, drums, guitar, and trumpet. In early 2007, when he was twelve, Bieber sang Ne-Yo's "So Sick" for a local singing competition in Stratford and placed second. Mallette posted a video of the performance on YouTube for their family and friends to see. She continued to upload videos of Bieber singing covers of various R&B; songs, and Bieber's popularity on the site grew. Chris Hicks, Bieber's A&R; at Island/Def Jam, explained the young artist's huge online following to HitQuarters by saying:

"He was doing something different. He was an attractive white kid singing very soulful R&B; hits. That set him apart immediately from anyone in his range because no one was covering or singing these kind of records. But equally important was that you believed in these songs – it was real. And you wanted to hear more."

2008–09: Discovery and ''My World''

While searching for videos of a different singer, Scooter Braun, a former marketing executive of So So Def, clicked on one of Bieber's 2007 videos by accident. Impressed, Braun tracked down the theater Bieber was performing in, located Bieber's school, and finally contacted Mallette. Mallette was reluctant because of Braun's Jewish religion; she remembered praying, "God, I gave him to you. You could send me a Christian man, a Christian label! ... you don’t want this Jewish kid to be Justin’s man, do you?" However, after praying with her church elders and receiving their encouragement, she permitted Braun to fly Bieber, then 13, to Atlanta, Georgia, to record demo tapes. A week after arriving, Bieber sang for R&B; singer/songwriter Usher. Bieber was soon signed to Raymond Braun Media Group (RBMG), a joint venture between Braun and Usher. Justin Timberlake was also reportedly in the running to sign Bieber, but lost the bidding war to Usher. Usher then sought assistance in finding a label home for the artist from then manager Chris Hicks, who helped engineer an audition with his contact Antonio L.A. Reid of Island Def Jam Music Group. Reid signed Bieber to Island Records in October 2008 (resulting in a joint venture between RBMG and Island Records) and appointed Hicks as executive Vice-President of Def Jam where he would be able manage Bieber's career at the label. At that point, Bieber and his mother moved to Atlanta temporarily, also the home of Usher and Braun, to record and get counseling from Braun. Braun became Bieber's manager.

Bieber's first single, "One Time", was released to radio while Bieber was still recording his debut album. The song reached number 12 on the Canadian Hot 100 during its first week of release in July 2009, and later peaked at number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100. During fall 2009 it had success in international markets. The song was certified Platinum in Canada and the US and Gold in Australia and New Zealand. Bieber's first release, an extended play entitled ''My World'', was released on November 17, 2009. The album's second single, "One Less Lonely Girl", and two promo singles, "Love Me", and "Favorite Girl", were released exclusively on the iTunes store and charted within the top forty of the Billboard Hot 100. "One Less Lonely Girl" was later also released to radio and peaked within the top fifteen in Canada and the US, being certified Gold in the latter. ''My World'' was eventually certified Platinum in the US and Double Platinum in both Canada and the UK. To promote the album, Bieber performed on several live shows such as mtvU's VMA 09 Tour, European program ''The Dome'', YTV's ''The Next Star'', ''The Today Show'', ''The Wendy Williams Show'', ''Lopez Tonight'', ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'', ''It's On with Alexa Chung'', ''Good Morning America'', ''Chelsea Lately'', and BET's ''106 & Park'' with Rihanna. Bieber also guest starred in an episode of ''True Jackson, VP'' in late 2009.

Bieber performed Stevie Wonder's "Someday at Christmas" for U.S. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama at the White House for ''Christmas in Washington'', which was broadcast on December 20, 2009, on U.S. television broadcaster TNT. Bieber was also one of the performers at Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest on December 31, 2009. Bieber was a presenter at the 52nd Grammy Awards on January 31, 2010. He was invited to be a vocalist for the remake of We Are The World (a song written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie) for its 25th anniversary to benefit Haiti after the earthquake. Bieber sings the opening line, which was sung by Lionel Richie in the original version. On March 12, 2010, a version of K'naan's "Wavin' Flag" recorded by a collective of Canadian musicians known as Young Artists for Haiti was released. Bieber is featured in the song, performing the closing lines.

2010: ''My World 2.0'' and continued success

"Baby", the lead single from his debut album, ''My World 2.0'', which features Ludacris, was released in January 2010 and became his biggest hit thus far, charting at number five in the U.S. and reaching the top ten in seven other countries. Two promo singles "Never Let You Go", and "U Smile" were top thirty hits on the U.S. Hot 100, and top twenty hits in Canada. According to review aggregator Metacritic, the album has received "generally favorable reviews". It debuted at number one on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200, making Bieber the youngest solo male act to top the chart since Stevie Wonder in 1963. ''My World 2.0'' also debuted at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart, Irish Albums Chart, and Australian Albums Chart, and the New Zealand Albums Chart and reached the top ten of fifteen other countries. To promote the album, Bieber appeared on several live programs including ''The View'', the 2010 Kids Choice Awards, ''Nightline'', ''The Late Show with David Letterman'', ''The Dome'' and ''106 and Park''. Bieber collaborated with Sean Kingston on his single "Eenie Meenie" which also appeared on Bieber's debut album. The song reached the top ten in the United Kingdom and Australia, and the top-twenty of most other markets. thumb|left|Bieber performing at the Conseco Fieldhouse, in August 2010 On April 10, 2010, Bieber was the musical guest on ''Saturday Night Live''. On July 4, 2010, Bieber performed at the Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular in New York City. The second single from ''My World 2.0'', "Somebody to Love", was released in April 2010, and a remix was released featuring Bieber's mentor Usher. The single reached number ten in Canada, number fifteen in the United States, and the top twenty in multiple international countries.

On June 23, 2010, Bieber went on his first official headlining tour, the My World Tour, starting in Hartford, Connecticut, to promote ''My World'' and ''My World 2.0''. In July 2010, it was reported that Bieber was the most searched for celebrity on the Internet. That same month his music video, "Baby", surpassed Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" to become the most viewed, and most disliked YouTube video ever. In September 2010, it was reported that Bieber accounted for three percent of all traffic on Twitter, according to an employee of the social-networking site.

Bieber began recording his second album in July 2010 in New York City. At this point, because of puberty, his voice was deeper than it was when he recorded his first album. In April 2010, the singer discussing his vocals remarked, "It cracks. Like every teenage boy, I'm dealing with it and I have the best vocal coach in the world. [...] Some of the notes I hit on "Baby" I can't hit anymore. We have to lower the key when I sing live." British singer/songwriter Taio Cruz confirmed in July 2010 that he is writing songs for Bieber's next album. Hip hop producer Dr. Dre produced two songs with Bieber in July 2010 but it is unknown if they were made for the album, which is currently due for a 2011 release. Bieber guest-starred in the season premiere of the CBS crime drama ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', aired on September 23, 2010. He played a "troubled teen who is faced with a difficult decision regarding his only brother", who is also a serial bomber. Bieber was also in a subsequent episode which aired on February 17, 2011, in which his character is killed. Bieber performed a medley of "U Smile", "Baby", and "Somebody to Love" and briefly played the drums at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards on September 12, 2010. Bieber announced in October 2010 that he would release an acoustic album, called ''My Worlds Acoustic''. It was released on Black Friday in the United States and featured acoustic versions of songs from his previous albums, and accompanied the release of a completely new song titled "Pray".

2011–present: ''Never Say Never'' film, ''Under the Mistletoe'' and ''Believe''

A 3-D part-biopic, part-concert film starring Bieber entitled ''Justin Bieber: Never Say Never'', was released on February 11, 2011, directed by ''Step Up 3D'' director Jon Chu. It topped the box office with an estimated grossing of $12.4 million on its opening day from 3,105 theaters. It grossed $30.3 million for the weekend and was narrowly beaten by the romantic comedy ''Just Go With It'', which grossed $31 million. ''Never Say Never'' is said to have exceeded industry expectations, nearly matching the $31.1 million grossed by Miley Cyrus's 2008 3-D concert film, Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert, which holds the record for the top debut for a music-documentary. The film is accompanied by his second remix album, ''Never Say Never – The Remixes'', released February 14, 2011, and features remixes of songs from his debut album, with guest appearances from Miley Cyrus, Chris Brown, and Kanye West, among others.

On February 27, 2011, Bieber attended the 2011 Vanity Fair Oscar Party with American actress and singer Selena Gomez, confirming several months of media speculation about a romantic relationship between the pair.

In June 2011, Bieber was ranked number 2 on the Forbes list of Best-Paid Celebrities under 30. He is the youngest star and 1 of 7 musicians on the list raking in with $53 million earned in a 12 month period. On November 1, 2011, Bieber released ''Under the Mistletoe'', his second studio album. It debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 210,000 copies in its first week of release. Bieber is currently recording his third studio album entitled ''Believe''. Kanye West and Drake are confirmed to be featured on the album.

Image

''The Observer'' newspaper in the UK published a report indicating that Justin Bieber is more influential in the social networking sphere than Barack Obama or The Dalai Lama. According to Jan Hoffman of ''The New York Times'', part of Bieber's appeal stems from his YouTube channel. Long before he released his EP, ''My World'', in mid-November, the YouTube videos attracted millions of views. Braun recognized the appeal. Prior to flying him to Atlanta, Braun wanted to "build him up more on YouTube first" and had Bieber record more home videos for the channel. "I said: 'Justin, sing like there’s no one in the room. But let's not use expensive cameras.' We'll give it to kids, let them do the work, so that they feel like it's theirs", recalled Braun. Bieber continues to upload videos to the same channel and has opened a Twitter account, from which he interacts with fans regularly; his account was reported in November 2010 to have over 6 million followers. Since then he has been consistently gaining followers at an average of 24,000 per day. The accounts also serve marketing purposes; for example, Bieber's music video for "One Time" only began selling quickly after it was uploaded to YouTube. Usher comments that while he and Bieber were both signed at the same age, "I had the chance to ramp up my success, where this has happened to Bieber abruptly." As a result, Usher, Braun, Bieber's bodyguard Kenny, and other adults surrounding Bieber constantly coach him on handling fame and his public image. After signing Bieber, Usher appointed one of his former assistants, Ryan Good, to be Bieber's road manager and stylist. Good, once nicknamed Bieber's "swagger coach", created a "streetwise look" for the singer which consisted of baseball caps, hoodies, dog chains and flashy sneakers. Amy Kaufman of ''The Los Angeles Times'' comments, "Though a product of a middle-class suburban upbringing in Stratford, Ontario, Bieber's manner of dress and speech ("Wassup man, how you doin'?" or "It's like, you know, whateva' ") suggest he's mimicking his favorite rappers."

Bieber is often featured in teen magazines such as ''Tiger Beat'', and has been labeled as a "teen hearthrob". Bieber has released a collection of nail varnishes to raise awareness for charity. Wax statues of Bieber are on display at Madame Tussauds wax museums in New York, Amsterdam and London. His change of hairstyle in 2010, and the consequent alterations to Bieber products, led to it being called 'the most expensive musical haircut of all time; one company spent $100,000 to fix its dolls for the 2011 Christmas season.

Bieber has been criticized for looking and sounding younger than his age, his teen-pop music, image, and frequent media attention. He has been a frequent target of Internet bloggers and message board posters, notably by users of Internet message board 4chan and users of YouTube. Nick Collins of ''The Daily Telegraph'' speculated that "Bieber's character also appears to strike a particularly sour note with his Internet critics, with many remarks commenting on his youthful appearance, his teen-pop songs, his image as a heart-throb to young teenage girls and his manner of speech".

Personal views

Bieber is a Christian, and said he has a relationship with Jesus, talks to him and that "he's the reason I'm here".

Bieber's comments in a February 2011 profile in ''Rolling Stone'' sparked controversy. Asked whether a person should wait until marriage to have sex, Bieber responded, "I don't think you should have sex with anyone unless you love them." Asked about his opinion on abortion, Bieber said he does not "believe in abortion" and that it is "like killing a baby". When asked about abortion in cases of rape, he said, "Well, I think that's really sad, but everything happens for a reason. I don't know how that would be a reason. I guess I haven't been in that position, so I wouldn't be able to judge that." In the same interview, Bieber talked about homosexuality, stating that "It's everyone's own decision to do that. It doesn’t affect me and shouldn't affect anyone else", and ''Rolling Stone'' commented, "It is not clear whether he intended to label homosexuality as a lifestyle choice." However, Bieber has also contributed to the It Gets Better Project, a project started in response to the suicide of Billy Lucas, a teenager who was the target of anti-gay bullying.

Bieber has said he is not interested in obtaining United States citizenship, praising Canada as being "the best country in the world", citing its health care system as an example.

Discography

''My World 2.0'' (2010)

''Under the Mistletoe'' (2011)

''Believe'' (2012)

Tours

2009: Urban Behavior Tour

2010–2011: My World Tour

Filmography

rowspan="4" ''Extreme Makeover: Home Edition'' Himself

Year !! Title !! Role !! Notes
rowspan="2"	2009	''True Jackson, VP''	>rowspan="3"| Guest star
''My Date With...''
	Silent Library (MTV series)>Silent Library''
''School Gyrls (film)	School Gyrls''	Cameo
''Saturday Night Live''
''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation''	Jason McCann
''Hubworld''	Guest star
''The X Factor (UK)''	Performer
rowspan="9"	2011	|	Guest star
''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation''	Jason McCann
''Khloé & Lamar''	|Episode:The Father In Law (uncredited) Himself playing the NBA Celebrity All Star Game
''Saturday Night Live''
''Justin Bieber: Never Say Never''	Himself
''Dancing With The Stars''	Guest star
''So Random!''	Himself
''Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade''	Guest star
''The X Factor (UK)''	Performer

Awards and nominations

References

Further reading

External links

Category:1994 births Category:Canadian child singers Category:Canadian Christians Category:Canadian dance musicians Category:Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States Category:Canadian Internet personalities Category:Canadian male singers Category:Canadian people of French descent Category:Canadian people of German descent Category:Canadian pop singers Category:Canadian rhythm and blues singers Category:Child pop musicians Category:Hip hop singers Category:Island Records artists Category:Musicians from Ontario Category:People from Stratford, Ontario Category:Living people

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known as	Christina Grimmie
background	solo_singer
birth name	Christina Victoria Grimmie
birth date	March 12, 1994
origin	Marlton, New Jersey, U.S.
instrument	Vocals, piano, guitar, ocarina, flute, drums
genre	Pop
occupation	Singer, songwriter, pianist
years active	2009–present
label	Unsigned
associated acts	Selena Gomez & The Scene, Sam Tsui, Allstar Weekend
website	http://www.youtube.com/user/zeldaxlove64
notable instruments	Keyboard, piano }}

Christina Victoria Grimmie (born March 12, 1994), known on YouTube as ''zeldaxlove64'', is a pianist and singer known for covers of hit songs by artists such as Demi Lovato, Selena Gomez, Christina Aguilera, Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, and many more.

YouTube recognition

Grimmie is best known for her video with Sam Tsui, covering Nelly's "Just a Dream", which has had over 34.5 million views between the two official versions of the video as of June 24, 2011. She had over 17 million views on her channel as of June 2011, which made her the 7th most subscribed musician on YouTube of all time at that point. She was also placed at number 1 of the top 5 of the MyYoutube competition, along with Selena Gomez, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj and Justin Bieber.

Career

Grimmie has performed in the UNICEF charity concert, and has also performed backup vocals for Selena Gomez & the Scene, and was on the 2011 first ever Digitour, especially designed for YouTube artists. She has appeared on the Billboard Social 50. She also opened for Selena Gomez & The Scene, Allstar Weekend and The Jonas Brothers during the Concert of Hope. She will be touring with Selena Gomez & the Scene beginning July 28, 2011. She released an EP, entitled ''Find Me'', on June 14, 2011. Her first single 'Advice' was released to Radio Disney on June 11, with the music video being released on July 19 on her Youtube channel.

Discography

''Find Me'' (2011)

References

External links

Christina Grimmie's YouTube channel

Christina Grimmie's Facebook fanpage

Christina Grimmie's Twitter account

Category:1994 births Category:Living people Category:American child singers Category:Articles created via the Article Wizard Category:American Internet personalities Category:Video bloggers

cs:Christina Grimmie de:Christina Grimmie es:Christina Grimmie fr:Christina Grimmie pt:Christina Grimmie ro:Christina Grimmie fi:Christina Grimmie sv:Christina Grimmie zh:Christina Grimmie